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Shymkent Oil Refinery

Refinery in Kazakhstan. Approximate location 42.26126, 69.65261.

RefineryKazakhstanCO₂ estimate (modelled)

Shymkent Oil Refinery is a refinery in Kazakhstan. Its listed capacity is 120,000 BBL per day. Refineries heat, fractionate and chemically transform crude oil into fuels and petrochemical feedstocks through energy-intensive distillation and cracking — extremely demanding on steam generation and heat recovery. It is operated by China National Petroleum Corp. By capacity it ranks #1 among 4 oil refineries in Kazakhstan. It emits about 1,675,091 t CO₂e a year from Climate TRACE, roughly comparable to the annual emissions of 390k passenger cars. Its CO₂ per unit of capacity is 62% above the national median for this sector.

120,000BBL per day
1,675,091t CO₂e / yr (Climate TRACE)
#3CO₂ rank in Kazakhstan
13.96t CO₂ per capacity unit

Facility data: Climate TRACE v6 (asset-level capacity & CO₂e, CC BY 4.0), id ct-3143997.

Data status

Known source data

FacilityShymkent Oil Refinery Climate TRACE
CountryKazakhstan Climate TRACE
Coordinates42.26126, 69.65261 Climate TRACE
Sector / subsectoroil-and-gas-refining Climate TRACE
Reported capacity120,000 BBL per day Climate TRACE
Owner / operatorChina National Petroleum Corp Climate TRACE
Modelled CO₂e1,675,091 t/yr Climate TRACE

Calculated from the dataset

Kazakhstan rank#3 of 20 · top 15.0% calculated
Global oil-and-gas-refining rank#198 of 630 · top 31.4% calculated
Climate contextderived from coordinates calculated

Not available

Fuel typeNot available not in dataset
Thermal capacity (MW)Not available not in dataset

Source data, measured cross-checks and calculated values are kept separate. No confidence percentage is invented.

Similar facilities by modelled emissions

Same Climate TRACE subsector; closest non-placeholder modelled CO₂e values. Russia and Belarus excluded.

Operating power plants within 50 km

PowerAtlas operating assets, ordered by great-circle distance from published coordinates.

In context: how this facility compares

At 120,000 BBL per day, Shymkent Oil Refinery is around the median refinery in Kazakhstan (120,000 BBL per day). Subsector: oil-and-gas-refining. As refinery, it requires high process heat (typically 200–600°C) for its core industrial operations — heat that must be supplied by boilers, furnaces or direct combustion, and losses through uninsulated vessels and piping represent wasted fuel. Removable modular insulation can cut those losses by 80–96%, surface-cooling equipment to ≤45°C, with payback often under 2 years. Refineries heat, fractionate and chemically transform crude oil into fuels and petrochemical feedstocks through energy-intensive distillation and cracking — extremely demanding on steam generation and heat recovery.

Capacity & CO₂-intensity comparison computed from Climate TRACE industrial facilities data; sector role based on engineering reference.

What 1,675,091 t CO₂e a year looks like

This facility's estimated annual CO₂e (Climate TRACE, modelled) in everyday equivalents from the US EPA Greenhouse Gas Equivalencies calculator:

390kcars driven for a year
218khomes' annual energy use
28 milliontree seedlings grown 10 years

Equivalencies: US EPA Greenhouse Gas Equivalencies. Emissions: Climate TRACE.

Carbon cost, Scope 1 & decarbonization potential

At its reported 1.7M t CO₂e/yr (Scope 1), Shymkent Oil Refinery carries no domestic carbon price; refinerys are not a CBAM-covered good, so there is no border-carbon liability. At the EU ETS reference price (€75/t) the emissions carry an indicative carbon value of €126M/yr. The fastest decarbonization lever is energy efficiency: eliminating heat loss on hot equipment (removable insulation, steam & waste-heat recovery) typically cuts 2–5% of fuel-related CO₂ — here ≈34k t–84k t/yr, worth €2.5M€6.3M, with payback up to 2 years. No domestic carbon price — but cement, steel, aluminium, fertilizer and hydrogen exported to the EU face CBAM at €75/t (rising to 100% by 2034).

1.7M t CO₂e / yrScope 1 emissions
€126M/yrindicative carbon value (not a CBAM liability)
34k t–84k t/yr ≈ €2.5M€6.3MDecarbonization potential

Carbon price: EU CBAM €75/t · EU ETS €79/t, July 2, 2026, refreshed live via Carbon Hub. CO₂: Climate TRACE. Efficiency range: US DOE / ASTM C680 (method). Indicative carbon value, not the cash bill — free allocation applies; not compliance advice. Estimate the saving for this site →

Capacity vs largest oil refineries in Kazakhstan

Shymkent Oil Refinery: 120,000 BBL per day120kShymkent O…KazMunayGas Pavlodar Refinery: 120,000 BBL per day120kKazMunayGa…KazMunayGas Atyrau Refinery: 110,000 BBL per day110kKazMunayGa…CAPSI Aktau Bitum Refinery: 20,000 BBL per day20kCAPSI Akta…

Listed capacity (BBL per day), Climate TRACE v6 (asset-level capacity & CO₂e, CC BY 4.0).

Operator

Operated by China National Petroleum Corp.

Local climate

Shymkent Oil Refinery sits in a hot-summer Mediterranean continental climate zone (Köppen Dsa), at 42.3°N in the northern hemisphere.

~11°Ctypical annual mean
~24°Ctypical warm-season
Hot-summer mediterranean continental: four distinct seasons — cold winters and warm summers

Köppen zone: Köppen-Geiger world climate classification (Kottek et al. 2006, 0.5° grid).

Site climate & environmental severity

The local climate sets how fast unprotected steel, protective coatings and the insulation on hot process equipment degrade at this site. It sits in a mild atmospheric environment (estimated ISO 9223 class C2 — Low), with thermal cycling the leading environmental stress.

C2ISO 9223 corrosivity (indicative)
30/100environmental-severity index
25.9°Cseasonal temperature swing
751 kmdistance to coast
LowCUI risk tier

In this site’s local climate, a bare 150 °C surface sheds about 1382 W/m² to ambient — roughly 1.06× the loss at a 20 °C reference; removable insulation recovers about 1313 W/m² of that. Reference-surface calculation at a 150 °C surface from WorldClim climate normals (ASTM C680 / ISO 12241) — an indicative per-climate comparison, not a measurement of this site’s specific equipment. Open method dataset: DOI 10.5281/zenodo.20787408 (CC BY 4.0).

Higher environmental severity is exactly where protective removable insulation pays back most: a sheltered micro-climate slows corrosion, UV and thermal-cycling damage and extends outdoor hardware service life. This is an indicative site-climate context — not a condition assessment of any specific plant or operator.

Indicative estimate via the ISO 9223:2012 informative method (atmospheric corrosivity from temperature, time-of-wetness and airborne salinity), using WorldClim climate normals, the Köppen-Geiger class and coast distance. Indicative, not a measured corrosion rate.

How it compares & nearby sites

The #1 largest of 4 oil refineries in Kazakhstan by listed capacity (Climate TRACE).

Nearby industrial sites

Location

Coordinates 42.26126, 69.65261. View on OpenStreetMap.

Heat loss & insulation profile

For a refinery, the main modular-insulation targets are crude & vacuum distillation columns, fired heaters, heat exchangers, steam lines, valves & flanges. Typical hot-surface ranges used for screening: 150–550 °C.

Indicative recoverable energy

A first-pass insulation screen suggests about 52,000 MWh/year of recoverable heat-loss reduction and about 10,000 t CO₂e/year of avoided emissions. Screening estimate scaled from installed process-heat projects and surface-temperature reduction data.

See Inzonex Modular Insulation → Run the calculator →

Screening calculation from facility class, capacity and open emissions/energy context. Engineering survey required before procurement.

Safety & the no-regret first step

Start with a thermal survey of valves, flanges, doors and bends. Removable modular insulation keeps maintenance access open while lowering exposed-surface temperature and wasted heat.

External climate finance your country can access

For energy-efficiency projects around process heat, likely external funding channels include:

Sources: country climate-finance facilities and public development-bank programmes.

Frequently asked questions

What type of facility is Shymkent Oil Refinery?

Shymkent Oil Refinery is a refinery in Kazakhstan. Refineries heat, fractionate and chemically transform crude oil into fuels and petrochemical feedstocks through energy-intensive distillation and cracking — extremely demanding on steam generation and heat recovery.

What capacity is listed for Shymkent Oil Refinery?

The open dataset lists 120,000 BBL per day of capacity for Shymkent Oil Refinery.

How much CO₂ does Shymkent Oil Refinery emit?

The page uses about 1,675,091 t CO₂e/year from the open dataset It ranks #3 among facilities in Kazakhstan by estimated CO₂.

Where is Shymkent Oil Refinery located?

Shymkent Oil Refinery is in Kazakhstan at approximately 42.26126, 69.65261.

Who operates Shymkent Oil Refinery?

The operator recorded in the open dataset is China National Petroleum Corp.

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